“ Woe to you ,” “You who are rich,” “You who are well fed now,” “You who laugh now” … “But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort. Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep” ( Luke 6:24–25 ). As I meditate on these words, I desire to receive the lessons they give. (1) As I meditated on today’s passage, Luke 6:24–25, the first phrase that caught my attention was “ the rich .” (a) So, I looked up the Greek word meaning “rich,” πλουσίοις (plousiois), on the internet and searched where else it appears in the Bible, reflecting on the rich (the wealthy): (i) Luke 21:1–4 : “Jesus looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering box. He a...
God’s law, the Law (2) [Romans 7:24-25] Romans 7 is one of the most difficult chapters. The reason is because there is a lot of controversy over whether Romans 7 is the story of the Apostle Paul before he believed in Jesus or after he accepted Jesus. Personally, I believe Romans 7 is the story of Paul after he believed in Jesus. So, was Paul in Romans 7 a new believer or a man of growing faith? Look at 1 Corinthians 3:3 – “for you are still fleshly. For since there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not fleshly, and are you not walking like mere men?” Here, the Apostle Paul wrote these words to the “fleshly” among them while writing a letter to the Corinthian church members, and the “fleshly” here refer to new believers in the Corinthian church. The Apostle Paul in Romans 7 wrote the letter to Rom...